Gov. Brown's Pension plan .

Gov. Brown tackles "Pension Reform" with a script from a former Governator.

Well Gov. Brown is jumping the gun on pension  reform . State workers won't be able to retire until there 57 . I have to argue , it seems to me that the Government does not want YOU to retire until your 80 years old , and YOU won't get the money you'd worked for all your life . It's simple as that. The state is broke , and your money is the CAUSE of the PROBLEM. Tell me has any one you know retired at 57 years old ?,  who works for the state as an 'average' joe de-plumber type of person . MOST of the state workers who do retire at 57 seem to me to be those making over 100,000 dollars , you'll never find a 40,000 a year person on salary retiring at 57 . Gov. Brown's plan hackles its way down to those making 40,000 a year . Yes' the average joe ! . It's seems that the Federal Government wants you to retire much (much much much ) later .We are told, with good reason, that the current pension system for public workers in California is unsustainable. But many of the reforms may be unsustainable too. But there’s a problem at its core: Brown’s plan – like most other pension reforms in California – would create a two-tiered pension system. Jerry Brown plan is just one of those contra NEW DEALS to take your retirement money away .a 12-Point Pension Reform Plan (pdf). Initial reviews from labor: thumbs down.Under the proposal, new state workers would move to a hybrid system combining guaranteed benefits with a 401K-style. It would also raise the retirement age from 55 to 67 and require that both new and existing employees pay at least 50 percent of the annual cost of their pension benefits. Brown said today he wants to put the plan before voters in November, 2012.

Analysis from KQED Sacramento Bureau Chief John Myers:

Brown's proposal is obviously only a starting point for negotiations with the Legislature. And from the sound of things so far, it's a tough sell with the state's politically powerful labor unions. In particular, his proposal for a hybrid system combining traditional pension benefits with a 401(k) style package is drawing fire.
The real question may be whether this plan is enough to solve the funding woes of the state's two pension funds. The governor's own advisers told reporters today that while the proposal offers "opportunities" to downsize the so-called 'unfunded liability' of CalPERS and CalSTRS, it does not guarantee that those pension funds will be able to get out of the long-term hole they're in. Instead, advisers say it'll keep the hole from getting deeper.
And that's going to be a tough sell to those most adamant that government roll back pension benefits -- not just for future workers, but for current workers who've yet to retire. In other words... this proposal is, for now, getting hit from all corners.

NOTES & COMMENTS:

According to a new report, many Americans will have to work into their 80s before being able to retire. The lower your income, the longer you’ll have to work. Those making 11,700 or less, will have a 50% chance of retiring by 84. Those making $72,500 and up will have a 50 percent chance of retiring at age 65.Congressmen don't make much money? You got to frickin kidding me, look up what their salaries... you'll find six figure digits for most of them, along with Cadillac insurance plans, guaranteed retirement after 1 term of office.Now if you look at state reps and senators yes they don't make much money but federal elected officials bank roll off of our money. Research...

Tax & More Tax = Jobs to China !

       

The Overburden of Tax on the American citizen is vary extreme from state to state . Americans seemed to be TAXED more and more since the 1930's . We now assume that the Democrats are the 'Tax and spend liberals" , while the Republicans are the Party of NO TAX. However that took a dive with both pizza mogul Herman Cain, and his competitor for the Tea Party vote Texan governor Rick Perry. Yes they want to TAX you some more with some outlandish tax law changes . Both men have proposed, as their keystone economic strategies, variants of the flat tax idea. Cain has proposed the “9-9-9″ plan, calling for a nine per cent sales tax, a nine per cent business tax, and a nine per cent flat tax, while Perry has proposed a 20 per cent flat tax which would be opt-in . Broadly, both these plans hinge on the argument that the American tax system is both overly complicated (having, as ours does, income tax bands) and unfair (because rich people should pay the same percentage of tax as the poor), but as Syracuse University Professor Leonard Burman said on Radio 5 last night, it is more complex than it sounds:.

“A flat tax is just a kind of VAT where the wage part of the tax is payed by workers and the basic idea is that you do that so that you can allow an exemption so that it’s not quite as regressive as a sales tax is, whereas a sales tax would be overall.
“The wrinkle in Rick Perry’s plan is that he allows the option of paying tax under our old complicated income tax for people who like that better. The concern a lot of us have is that a flat tax is regressive, kind of unfair, it’s a huge tax cut for high income people…
“[It's regressive because] it’s basically a sales tax, and while we can think of it as a wage tax and a cash-flow tax on businesses, but, y’know, if you look at wages for high-income people, wages are half of their income, for low income people its all of their income.
“If you look at spending, high income people spend only a fraction of their income because they’re rich enough to be able to save most of it, low income people spend all of their income, so both Herman Cain’s sales tax/flat tax – Herman Cain’s plan is really a hodgepodge, it’s actually three different kinds of sales taxes labelled as an income tax and a business tax and a sales tax, I think he figured out that calling it a 999 plan would be saleable than calling it a 25% sales tax, which is actually what it is.

“Cain’s plan at least has the advantage that it could plausibly pay for the government, because it’s got a very very broad base and a pretty high tax rate. The problem with Perry’s plan is that it would produce enormous deficits.
“High income people would all choose the option of paying 20 per cent wage tax rather than the 35 per cent that they pay now on all of their income including interest and dividends, and other capital income, so it’s fiscally irresponsible.
“It’s actually more complicated than the current system, because you have to choose between the new flat tax and the old complicated income tax, and from my perspective at least it’s really unfair because it would produce huge tax cuts for high income people. That’s not really our biggest problem right now, that high income people pay too much tax.”

 Perry’s plan is torn apart by Jared Bernstein, a member of Obama’s economic team, who argues that it only makes sense if you believe the following things are the problems with America’s tax system:

• The tax code is too simple;
• Rich people need more after-tax income;
• There’s too much retirement security in America;
• Multinationals aren’t creating enough jobs abroad.

These problems pale in comparison to those of Herman Cain’s, however. Yes, Perry’s will probably bankrupt America, but for Cain, a picture is worth a thousand words.

--------------------------------------------------------------------
JOBS TO CHINA.

 Anti-Suicide NETS at a i Phone &I pad manufacturing plant in China .

With all his "Genius" Steve Jobs provided an Anti-American feel to the  Jobs Market that's been reeling because of Obama's record of 9.1 % four year record of no-action . Mr. Jobs sent work to China , YES work that could have done here and MADE in the USA. APPLE with it's net worth of 74 billion still has sweatshops in China where they make iPad and iPhone products for a fraction of the cost that an American factory could produce them for. The working conditions were so deplorable that people were jumping out of the factory windows and killing themselves. Steve Jobs response wasn't to improve working conditions, but rather to install suicide safety nets to prevent the suicide jumpers from falling to their death.The iPhone was estimated to cost $130 to make (when Apple was charging over $800 for it) and probably costs even less than that. Apple had more than enough revenues and profits to manufacture the phone in the U.S. Because more and more companies like Apple only want bigger profits even when they have more than enough revenues, there are a growing number of impoverished areas expanding in America. It would be just as cost-effective to manufacture Apple products in the U.S. and save on massive international shipping costs, export of the right equipment, protection of patents, etc, than send over 500,000 jobs overseas. This is what is now called  the NEW capitalism, no businesses care about America, they only care that Americans buy they products and that the powerful Americans in suits lower the corporate tax rate. This is the "great" thing about capitalism isn't it? You get to buy what you want but you don't get to make it. 

NOTES& COMMENTS:

Increasing attention has been paid to the sharp increase in suicides this year at Foxconn's Shenzhen factory which manufactures iPods, iPads, and iPhones. It also fills orders from a broad list of clientele including Dell, HP, Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony.  With at least one employee dying from exhaustion as well, the pressure is on for Foxconn and its Taiwanese owner Hon Hai Precision Industry Ltd. to enact changes.

Blame Congress......................

 With all time Low Ratings how can anything get done in Washington D.C. ? Bickering , and the inability  for compromise is destroying the Government.

Let's imagine that in the future .........not far off.   That we either have  **both houses of congress dominated with Democrats , or Republicans . If the Republicans/ Democrats  win all the seats and the Presidency . America would turn into a one Party state all by the virtue of the free election process . The balance of power would shift left or right . For years there has been a saying that to change any thing we need to Cross party lines. Vote against the incumbents, all of them, every time., the people don't always get what they want--but--in most cases get what they deserve--we are on the verge of paying the price for stupidity that came into existence in 1973. It's a shame that both houses in Congress can't get anything done for the people because both of the parties have been sold out to the RICHEST conglomerate that can buy the congress and influence the VOTE and PASS laws . Yes, both parties of the House and Senate have been sold out to lobbyists .  Whether if they be UNIONS or CORPORATIONS  . The power of the Voter has been weakened to some extent as such that before all American eyes , every American has been TAXED with out Representation .Here is an 'example'.

Bank of America and several smaller banks recently announced new monthly fees for customers who use debit cards. The move prompted howls of protest, including from Sen. Dick Durbin (D., Ill.), who took to the Senate floor to encourage customers to remove their money from banks that raise fees.
That a sitting senator would encourage a bank run, especially in this economy, is remarkable - and an indication of the political heat generated by the fees. So let's see if we can shed some light on how to think about them
No customer wants to pay new fees for any product or service he already receives. So why are these banks taking the unpopular step and dinging their customers $3, $4, or $5 a month?
It's important to note that not everyone can say he didn't see it coming - least of all Durbin.
When Congress pushed through its big financial reform package last year, it included price controls on the so-called "swipe fees" banks can charge merchants for the use of debit cards in retail transactions. These fees are one way that banks make money. And they had nothing to do with the crisis that triggered the financial reform measure.
So why did Congress include these price caps? Because Durbin and other supporters of the measure were aiming to help friends in the retail industry who don't like paying the fees.
Before the law passed, the banks warned Durbin that the swipe-fee controls would likely lead them to raise prices for other services. But the caps passed anyway. And so banks have done exactly as they said they would do: They raised fees elsewhere to make up for the lost revenue, estimated at more than $6 billion.
Banks are not the most popular institutions these days, but they can hardly be faulted for raising fees in one area of their business after Congress imposed price caps in another.
This is not the first time Washington has experimented with price controls to ill effect. Policymakers also advanced price controls to regulate the airline, telecommunications, and trucking industries, among others. In the 1970s, the Nixon administration imposed caps on gasoline prices, which led to shortages, long lines at filling stations, and outrage.
Price controls are one of the most pernicious kinds of government regulation. In an ironic twist, they often lead to higher consumer prices over time, because they build inefficiencies into economic transactions and decision-making that end up costing consumers more in the long run.
Policymakers largely abandoned price controls after the painful experiences of the 1970s. But it looks as if we're repeating the mistakes of the '70s all over again. The public ire should be directed, as it was back then, at the Washington policymakers interfering with the market.
The good news is that a bipartisan effort is channeling some of the outrage in a productive manner. Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R., Utah) and Rep. Bill Owens (D., N.Y.) have sponsored legislation to repeal the price controls.
But they face an uphill battle. Large retailers like the price caps. And some policymakers see banks as a convenient villain. If the price controls remain, the loser will be he average bank customer, who will likely see less innovation, worse service, and higher prices over time.

NOTES& COMMENTS:

The blame rests solely on Congress since they are the ones with the lawful power to enact the laws and support the rules. What has Congress done? In 1913 with the enactment of the Federal Reserve Act, Congress created the banker's dream and abrogated its responsibility to preserve the value of our money. The Federal Reserve is not part of the federal government at all; rather it is owned and operated by the member banks and rigidly controlled by the major players in the banking industry. Every decision and action made by the Federal Reserve has been to benefit its members at the expense of the American wage earner, saver, and retiree.Additionally, Congress enacted the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act in 1999 which repealed part of the Glass-Steagall Act which prohibited banks from owning other financial companies. This allowed banks to also operate in other financial arenas like insurance and investments so that banks could take more risk in the hope of earning higher returns. Congress also enacted the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in 2002 which increased regulations and federal oversight on all publicly held companies and many privately held companies. In 2010 Congress passed the Dodd-Frank Act which altered federal regulation and oversight for virtually every aspect of financial operations in both the private and public sector. Each of those laws contributed to making it more difficult for businesses to be competitive, especially small businesses. These acts of Congress need to be repealed or seriously scaled back before our economy gets going again . We need and deserve Congressmen who have the knowledge to understand the problems and have the courage to do what is right for the nation rather than simply agree to what is politically expedient. We do not need the self-serving, career politicians our current system attracts; we need real patriots to serve us! November 2012 is another opportunity to elect citizen-leaders who will faithfully serve those who elected them rather than continue the same old game of confiscating wealth from those who earned it and transferring that wealth to those who did not..

**A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 46% of Likely U.S. Voters now view most members of Congress as corrupt. Thats up seven points from June and the highest finding yet recorded.  Just 29% think most members are not corrupt, and another 25% are not sure. Similarly, a whopping 85% of voters think most members of Congress are more interested in helping their own careers than in helping other people. Thats a record high for surveys stretching back to early November 2006.  Only seven percent (7%) believe most of the legislators are more interested in helping others.

CONTACT CONGRESS LET THEM KNOW :

http://www.contactingthecongress.org/

Occupying America

Remember these people marching are Marxists and Communists! 

Whoever sits in the White House will have to contend with the 'Occupy Wall Street' and the 'Tea Party' together protesting the ever worse economic conditions . These protests are all on the same lines of thought . No Taxes , More Jobs , Immigration , Fairness, cut Spending , get out of Iraq  & Afghanistan . Any one who thinks that any of these Tea Party People are any different than the wild or almost hippie like Occupiers are wrong . Glenn Beck said that the Occupy movement is made up of Marxists jocks , I disagree with Beck . May be he needs to go to one of the these Occupy protests and hear what they are saying then go to one of the Tea Party gatherings , and Lo! we have a connection . These two groups are Fed Up with how things are running . Protesting the Banks , Wall Street is not just an option but I see the sense of it . Since Washington Bailed out the Banks with trillions of Tax payer money to save them from collapsing into a depression like state . The  *****Kind Banks returned to their original practice of foreclosing on homeowners pushing people out of their homes . The Big  ( Business ) billionaires who could create jobs here in America , and mind you as I rant here . They just packed up their Big Businesses and off-shored  a host of jobs overseas , all because they don't want to pay and American a decent  wage .  I would have to say WAKE AMERICA , maybe we all need to protest and GET the American dream back .The Beginning Is Near! proclaimed one early sign at New York City’s Liberty Plaza, which since September 17 has been held by a coalition of activists under the Occupy Wall Street banner. In the early days of the action, many on the professional left doubted that Occupy Wall Street would be the beginning of anything. “Another day, another demo…” some shrugged, weary from years of protests that never seem to stop another war, another robbery of the poor by the rich. In Washington, for two frustrating years, the debate has been focused on how much austerity to have—the slash-and-burn policies of the Republican Party or the austerity-lite measures of President Obama. (  $ )More stimulus, we were told, was a nonstarter. Hope seemed a distant, perhaps false, memory .But what does Occupy Wall Street want? Whether with condescension or curiosity, that is the question being posed to the young people whose brilliant act of symbolic politics has landed them in the spotlight. Wisely, they are taking their time answering it. So far they have put out only one statement, which isn’t a list of demands so much as an indictment of the corporate state: “We come to you at a time when corporations, which place profit over people, self-interest over justice, and oppression over equality, run our governments.”.

NOTES & COMMENTS:

*****Goldman Sachs alone in 2010 gave John Boehner $100,000.00.
What did they get for that kind of money? Read on.
"Banks are mobilising a smooth-running lobbying machine in Washington to ­battle Barack Obama's plans to limit the size and scope of Wall Street institutions, as financial services firms gear up to stop a shake-up that could slice away large chunks of their operations.Their influence on Capitol Hill is broad – the top eight US banks spent $26m (£16m) on lobbying efforts last year, an increase of 6% on 2008 despite their financial woes, according to Congressional records. And in the first 10 months of 2009, the financial industry donated $78.2m to federal candidates and party committees – more than any other business sector – according to political research institute the Centre for Responsive Politics." Banks are mobilising a smooth-running lobbying machine in Washington to ­battle Barack Obama's plans to limit the size and scope of Wall Street institutions, as financial services firms gear up to stop a shake-up that could slice away large chunks of their operations. Their influence on Capitol Hill is broad – the top eight US banks spent $26m (£16m) on lobbying efforts last year, an increase of 6% on 2008 despite their financial woes, according to Congressional records. And in the first 10 months of 2009, the financial industry donated $78.2m to federal candidates and party committees – more than any other business sector –

($) President Obama : announced plans to give away billions of dollars to alternative energy companies, the lobbyists came running toward Washington.

Billionaire entrepreneurs T. Boone Pickens and Ted Turner were just the latest to make the trip. The duo delivered a joint talk in the capital city Tuesday about their alternative energy investments, and both made it clear they were there looking for handouts.

For the past three years, legendary oilman T. Boone Pickens has crossed the country selling a plan to eliminate America’s reliance on foreign energy sources through domestic natural gas production and wind energy.

He just needs $5 billion of your dollars to do it.

“This is all the help I want. I want a billion dollars a year for five years and then kill it,” Pickens said, describing the amount of public money he’ll need through tax credits to get his plan off the ground. “Five billion dollars.”

More specifically, Pickens is busy lobbying for a bill — HR 1380 — which is currently sitting in committee and if passed would provide the billions he’s requesting. Sponsored by Oklahoma Republican Rep. John Sullivan, the legislation would change the Internal Revenue Code to give tax credits to entrepreneurs like Pickens who invest in the renewable energy business.

The 'Mark' of Cain.

While the GOP won't embrace Mitt Romney because of his 'Mormon' faith  , Herman Cain shares the same stigma from the African- American community.A black Republican can be a scary thing to Democrats , if your African - American your political party has always been Democrat.  Cain at best 100 % African - American. The point here is while Obama is not 100 % African - American , Obama touched a cord with Whites more for the vote , and the younger generation . Here Cain presents a more mature position of views that are some what radical . As again , if the GOP had a choice of closing the image of their party as of accepting African -Americans , and people of color . Back in 2008 it should have been Herman Cain in the White House , thanks to the GOP Mr. Cain is a late comer .

 In an interview with The Associated Press, Cain said the Texas governor "thought he had carved out that niche, when he didn't own that niche by himself."

"People are realizing that he is not the only Christian conservative in this race," Cain told The AP at a campaign stop in Harriman, Tenn., where he spoke before close to 1,000 tea party activist."People are realizing that he is not the only Christian conservative in this race," Cain told The AP at a campaign stop in Harriman, Tenn., where he spoke before close to 1,000 tea party activists.

"You know, I don't wear my Christian faith, which has been my faith since I was 10 years old, on my forehead," Cain said. "But people can see it on my website and when they read my credentials they can see I'm a staunch Christian conservative, and they are saying 'wait a minute."'But his campaign finance reports for the most recent quarter show him trailing well behind Perry and Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, who've raised $17 and $14 million respectively Cain says he's raised $2.8 million and the report will show he has $1.3 million cash on hand. Through the end of September, Cain has loaned his campaign $675,000, with most of it taken out during the spring.

But Cain said that in the two weeks since the reporting period closed Sept. 30 he's raised another $2 million as his poll numbers have climbed,

"We don't know if it will keep up at that pace, but we're going to try to keep up a healthy pace," he said.After just six weeks, ever-fickle Republican presidential primary voters are cooling to Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R), setting their sights instead on a Tea Party favorite: former Godfather’s Pizza CEO Herman Cain (R). Though Cain has been running since January, his recent debate performances and straw poll victories have created a boomlet for the former pizza executive. Now, Cain is leading state polls from North Carolina to West Virginia to Nebraska and surging nationally as well. Taking up the mantle once occupied by the likes of Donald Trump and Rick Perry, pollster Tom Jensen declared yesterday that “Herman Cain is the new GOP frontrunner.

CAIN'S PLAN: 

(1) PLEDGED THAT HE “WILL NOT” APPOINT MUSLIMS IN HIS ADMINISTRATION: In an interview with ThinkProgress earlier this year, Herman Cain declared that he “will not” appoint a Muslim in his administration if he were elected president. In the months that followed, Cain qualified his position a number of times – at one point even telling Glenn Beck that he would appoint Muslims but only on the condition that they take a special loyalty oath – before finally recanting this unconstitutional stance and issuing an apology to Muslim-Americans. Unfortunately, since that time Cain has continued to peddle the ridiculous notion that Sharia law is a threat to the American legal system.
(2) TOLD THINKPROGRESS, “I DON’T THINK THE CURRENT MINIMUM WAGE IS NECESSARY”: During his time as the top lobbyist for the restaurant and fast food industry, Cain fought against an increase in the minimum wage. During a recent ThinkProgress interview, Cain went further, saying “I don’t think the current minimum wage is necessary.” As Greg Sargent noted, not even conservative icon Barry Goldwater supported eliminating the minimum wage.
(3) CONFUSED BY BASIC CONCEPT OF ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN PEACE PROCESS: In an interview on Fox News Sunday, Cain was asked his opinion on the right of return for Palestinian refugees. Cain was clearly confused by the question, responding, “The right of return? [pause] The right of return?” When host Chris Wallace explained the issue to him, Cain suggested that Israel wouldn’t have a problem “with people returning,” a prospect Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu fiercely opposes. The incident was not the first time Cain displayed lack of familiarity with international affairs. Previously, Cain said he doesn’t know enough to say what he thinks about the war in Afghanistan.
(4) IMMIGRATION PLAN INVOLVES A “GREAT WALL OF CHINA” AND A “MOAT [WITH] ALLIGATORS”: In a speech to Iowa Republicans, Cain called for building a fence along the entire U.S.–Mexico border, comparing the effort to the Great Wall of China. Building a fence along the nearly 2,000-mile border not only wouldn’t work, it would cost the U.S. hundreds of billions of dollars in the process. Cain also suggested building a moat next to the fence and filling it with alligators.
(5) BELIEVES “WE ALREADY RECOGNIZE” THE GOVERNMENT OF TAIWAN: Discussing U.S.-Chinese relations with ThinkProgress, Cain confirmed fears that he lacked a firm grasp on foreign policy matters when he declared that “we already recognize” the government of Taiwan. In fact, the United States stopped recognizing Taiwan in 1979. Cain, visibly confused about relations between the U.S, China, and Taiwan, refused to say whether this belief meant he planned to send an ambassador to Taiwan, saying instead, “President Cain will get back to you!” Lest the matter seem trivial, Chinese-Taiwanese relations are extraordinarily tense and the matter of diplomatic relations with the United States carries enormous implications for the billions of people living in southeast Asia.

(6) WANTS TO PUT DIRTY ENERGY CEOS IN CHARGE OF EPA REGULATIONS: After an Iowa voter asked about increasing domestic oil production, Cain proposed creating a commission consisting of businessmen from the coal, oil, shale oil, and natural gas industries to gut environmental protections. Cain even said he would appoint the CEO of Shell, claiming the company had been “abused” by the EPA. Cain has close ties to several top oil executives.
(7) BELIEVES IRAQ SHOULD PAY U.S. BACK FOR INVADING THEIR COUNTRY: Cain suggested in a 2008 interview that Iraq should pay the United States back for invading and occupying their country. Even Rick Santorum, who nobody would confuse as a moderate, strongly disagreed with this idea, saying, “I think that would send every possible wrong signal.” Since the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq began, hundreds of thousands of Iraqi civilians have died and millions have been displaced.
(8) TRIED TO HIDE HIS GAY TREASURER: A former staffer to Cain, Kevin Hall, testified in court that Cain attempted to cover up the involvement of his openly gay PAC treasurer Scott Toomey. According to Hall, the campaign was trying to cover up Toomey’s involvement due to his sexuality. Cain’s lawyers declined to dispute the allegations.
(9) SAYS HE WOULD SUPPORT A NATIONAL PHOTO ID LAW: With an increasing number of conservative governors implement new requirements for voters to present photo identification at the polls, Cain told ThinkProgress he’d support such a bill on a federal level. “If you need a picture to get on an airplane, why shouldn’t you need one in order to be able to vote?” Cain asked. To be clear, voting is not like getting on an airplane – only one is the basis of our very democracy – and requirements that citizens present photo IDs instead of other forms of identification has the potential to disenfranchise millions of voters, especially minorities and poorer individuals.
(10) BELIEVES THAT AMERICANS HAVE THE RIGHT TO BAN MOSQUES: During a Fox News Sunday interview, Cain professed his belief that if a community wants to ban a mosque, “they have a right to do that.” Rather than idle banter, Cain’s comments came fresh off his speech blasting the proposed expansion of an existing Islamic center in Murfreesboro, Tennessee because it was, in the former pizza executive’s estimation, “not an innocent mosque.” Cain’s view is squarely at odds with not only the Constitution, but basic precepts of tolerance and diversity as well.

 (11)The 9-9-9 plan eliminates the payroll tax and estate tax, which brought in a combined $883 billion in 2010, or about 41 percent of the $2.16 trillion collected by the federal government last year. Cain’s proposal also wipes out taxes on capital gains and repatriated corporate profits.The Tax Policy Center estimates that cutting capital gains taxes alone would allow 23,000 millionaires to pay no income taxes, a move that would add $11 billion to the deficit each year. Cain’s fellow GOP presidential candidates Michele Bachmann, Newt Gingrich and Jon Huntsman also support eliminating the capital gains tax.Cain’s plan to end taxes on corporate profits that are earned overseas and then brought back into America would drop federal revenues by about $80 billion over the next decade, according to the tax center.

NOTES & COMMENTS:

Cain’s plan: If you have to spend most of your income, you get taxed 9% on your income and 9% again when you spend it – similar to what you’re paying now. If you’re very wealthy and make most money from government bonds, capital gains and dividends, you pay 0% on your income and since you don’t spend most of it, you’re barely taxed at all. That replaces “oppression”???

LOL! …. Under the Clinton tax rates we had a skyrocketing economy, continuous YEARLY federal revenue growth each year (not federal revenue decreases like during the Bush years) and our federal bills (which Republicans also added to) were paid during the last two years, resulting in 2 annual federal budget surpluses.
“RESULTS” CommonSenseParty, results are what count:
CARTER YEARS:
……………………. 1977 …………………………….. 1980 ……………
REVENUE: ……. $278,741,000,000 …………. $403,903,000,000 ….. Growth in Revenue = 44.9%
OUTLAYS: ……. $328,675,000,000 …………. $477,044,000,000 ….. Growth in Outlays = 45.1%
Difference between Outlay Growth and Revenue Growth during Carter Years = “0.2%”
(Outlays grew faster than Revenue by 0.2%, thus Carter’s $280 billion increase in the national debt during his 4 years.)
REAGAN YEARS:
……………………. 1981 …………………………….. 1988 ……………
REVENUE: ……. $469,097,000,000 …………. $667,747,000,000 ….. Growth in Revenue = 42.3%
OUTLAYS: ……. $542,956,000,000 …………. $860,012,000,000 ….. Growth in Outlays = 58.4%
Difference between Outlay Growth and Revenue Growth during Reagan Years = “16.1%”
(Outlays grew faster than Revenue by 16.1%, thus Reagan’s increase in the national debt equal to $1.7 TRILLION”, i.e., more than alll 39 presidents before him COMBINED)
CLINTON YEARS:
……………………. 1993 …………………………….. 2000 ……………
REVENUE: ……. $842,401,000,000 …………. $1,544,607,000,000 ….. Growth in Revenue = 83.4%
OUTLAYS: ……. $1,142,799,000,000 ………. $1,458,185,000,000 ….. Growth in Outlays = 27.6%
Difference between Outlay Growth and Revenue Growth during Clinton Years = “-55.8%” (Revenue grew faster than Outlays by 55.8%, thus two surpluses at the end of fiscal year 1999 and fiscal year 2000)
BUSH # 2 YEARS:
……………………… 2001 …………………………….. 2008 ……………
REVENUE: ……. $1,337,815,000,000 ………. $1,865,945,000,000 ….. Growth in Revenue = 25.8%
OUTLAYS: ……. $1,516,008,000,000 ………. $2,507,793,000,000 ….. Growth in Outlays = 65.4%
Difference between Outlay Growth and Revenue Growth during Bush # 2 Years = “39.8%” (Outlays grew faster than Revenue by 39.8%, thus Bush # ‘s increase in the debt by “$4.9 TRILLION”)

California's Bad Dream.

Brown's liberalism at his best. Free scholarships for children of illegals . OK, how are we going to pay for this?

Gov. Jerry Brown of California signed the Dream Act on Saturday granted illegal immigrants access to state financial aid ... News reports state clearly that :  Under the legislation signed by Gov. Jerry Brown on Saturday, the children of parents who are in the country illegally can apply for state scholarships and financial aid at public universities and community colleges starting in January 2013. OK, I don't know where to begin. There are so many reasons why this is wrong. Anyway. The State can't afford to give 'scholarships to it's natural born legal student population' , yet can spend it on illegals by giving them some sort of amnesty ? do not care of this will benefit one or 200 students it is totally unfair to reward illegals. Many of us American Citizens are struggling to put our own kids through college yet these freeloaders get a free ride. They have broken the law and get rewarded! Does the United States of Mexico have a Dream Act of their own for any illegal Gringos who have sneaked across their boarder to make a easy living in Mexico ? Has the rational of our elected officials been twisted around by the Latino vote that has blind sided and created a double standard for Citizen and Non- Citizen? Dream Act supporters have said they also will push for illegal immigrants to become eligible for driver licenses, a next move in a bid for full U.S. citizenship for illegal immigrants.

These funds are needed to be used for our students. I do not think we are getting the full story. Maybe it is time that we all claimed to be illegal. Free medical, food stamps etc just to name a few benefits. Aside from this Dream Act, does the public also realize the amount of money being taken away in our public school system from our students to pay for bilingual education and other programs.

We need a laws like Alabama. When the news interviewed a few undocumented people in Birmingham, AL they were asked what are they doing now that they are cracking down and demanding documentation, these folks answered we are going to move to California because they do not ask for anything and we get wonderful benefits!The DREAM Act was just a way to grant amnesty to millions of illegal aliens by first providing citizenship to their children. Extended families would follow in huge numbers. We cannot afford to import, educate and support more unskilled, non-English speaking workers when we have unemployment among American citizens at 9.8%.As for the bogus claims that they are essential to our economy, I ask, at what cost?

If you look at a family of five with the father working construction and the mother as a part time daycare worker with a total family income of $35,000, they would pay zero income tax, burden our emergency rooms, and force our schools to hire language teachers. Even if they declared their income and paid social security, which I would doubt, the earned income tax credit would return more to them than they had paid into the system. Healthcare would cost $6,000 per year. Student annual per capita costs are $11,000 plus another $1,200 for English as a second language. Their net drain on services would exceed their total income. Don’t believe me, look at what is breaking the bank in California.

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NOTES & COMMENTS:

Unbelievable!! American families are struggling to send their children to college, yet we're going to give money to illegal immigrants who can't use the free education they'll receive to legally get a job in California anyway! This is just one of many reasons why I'm against the Internet sales tax. Our hard earned money is wasted on things like this. 

CCGirl. AB-131 applies to illegal aliens (having been in high school for at least 3 years) are eligible for STATE financial aid and grants. So this applies specifically to illegals, not American citizens.

The LA Times summarized the bill in the following manner: "The measure would allow illegal immigrants who graduate from a state high school and demonstrate both merit and need to apply for publicly funded scholarships and other state aid. A bill passed last month already allows these deserving students to apply for privately funded scholarships."

They'll be "Deserving" in my book when they go the extra mile and become citizens.

The Times went on to endorse the bill, stating "Undoubtedly, some people will oppose providing state aid to illegal immigrants at a time when tuition is rising for all students and California's public colleges and universities are struggling to survive the economic downturn. But barring them from aid is both shortsighted policy and foolish economics that would rob California of future skilled workers who can pay taxes and fill jobs left vacant by aging baby boomers expected to retire in the coming years."

Hank and Joe !

Hank Williams Jr. Stole the show with his dumb remarks on FOX news . 

There are really stupid things going on as the "race" to the Oval Office nears , perhaps it shows at times how extreme the right can be , here are two examples I am going to share . I often asked is there any intelligent people who are Republican ? Hank Williams Jr. may end up regretting an analogy he made this morning on "Fox & Friends." Hank likened Obama to Hitler . No No apologists ! I happen  to think that "some one" is planting these escapades to give the people the wrong image of Republicans .We had our stupid remarks from Donald Trump who was running for President , we had our Sarah Palin slip ups , and I am sure that public views Republicans with some sense of caution when ever some one  who ' Claims ' to be a Republican opens his or her mouth , it makes the Republicans look bad . I am also getting vibes that the Occupy Wall Street People are connected to the Tea Party , they are just the Hippie Version of the Tea Party .The 'secret Government' plants it's stupid moles everywhere...........................

Hank Williams Jr. no longer will be heard on ESPN's intro to Monday Night Football, but that doesn't mean he has been silenced.

The country music legend, still miffed at being dumped because of his analogy involving President Barack Obama and Adolf Hitler, is retaliating with a song.

UPDATE: AP reported earlier that the song would be titled I'll Keep My ..., but that apparently isn't the case. Deadspin has the full lyrics and says the title is Keep The Change. Williams also is offering fans a free download of the song at his website. A sampling of the lyrics:

"So Fox 'n Friends wanna put me down
"Ask for my opinion
"Twist it all around."

And also:

"Well two can play that gotcha game you'll see."

Williams told the AP he wrote the song Friday and recorded it in a Nashville studio later that day. It's expected to be on iTunes late today or early tomorrow.

The lyrics also say the U.S. is "going down the drain" and becoming "The United Socialist States of America." Not surprisingly, Hank Jr. also calls for people to not watch ESPN or Fox.

With the Williams intro out, tonight's Monday night game between Chicago and Detroit will be opened with a video segment on Lions legend Barry Sanders.

NEXT

Congressmen "Joe the Plumber." he will fighting for you on the GOP Ticket 2012!

"Joe the Plumber," who gained prominence during the 2008 presidential campaign, has filed papers to run for Congress in Ohio.

Samuel Joseph Wurzelbacher submitted a statement of candidacy for Ohio's 9th Congressional District -- a seat heavily changed in redistricting that will pit Democrats Dennis Kucinich and Marcy Kaptur in a primary. Wurzelbacher filed to run as a Republican.

Wurzelbacher, then an employee of a plumbing contractor, talked to Barack Obama as the candidate met with residents in his Holland, Ohio, neighborhood. Wurzelbacher suggested that Obama's tax plan would result in higher taxes for him.

Republican nominee Sen. John McCain seized on that exchange and repeatedly referred to the man he dubbed "Joe the Plumber" in his final debate against Obama.

The Arizona senator held up Wurzelbacher as a symbol for what could happen to the middle class if the Democrat got into the White House. It led to intense scrutiny of Wurzelbacher, who did not have a plumber's license and who later said McCain "screwed my life up."

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NOTES & COMMENTS:

( On HANK JR ) I watched the interview and Hank only has himself to blame for what he said. The Fox News people asked him to clarify his comment and that gave him time to clean it up but he didn't. He only has himself to thank for his poor choice of words, so stop crying wolf and be a man and stand by what you said instead of trying to blame Fox.

( ON JOE the PLUMBER )

Hey Joe, don't blame McCain for screwing up your life. You did that when you opened your Fox provoked mouth. Yeah, you have about as much chance of getting elected to the Senate as Macy's having a half price sale all year round. Why don't you talk to your buddy Sarah, she might be looking for someone to drive her Fox bus around.

Wall Street Revolution?

Americans protesting corporate greed, and being arrested . Are they crazy?

Their chief target is Wall Street, but many of the demonstrators in New York and across the U.S. are also thoroughly disgusted with Washington, blaming politicians of both parties for policies they say protect corporate America at the expense of the middle class"At this point I don't see any difference between George Bush and Obama. The middle class is a lot worse than when Obama was elected," said John Penley, an unemployed legal worker from Brooklyn.The Occupy Wall Street movement, which began last month with a small number of young people pitching a tent in front of the New York Stock Exchange, has expanded nationally and drawn a wide variety of activists, including union members and laid-off workers. Demonstrators marched Thursday in Philadelphia, Salt Lake City, Los Angeles and Anchorage, Alaska, carrying signs with slogans such as "Get money out of politics" and "I can't afford a lobbyist..

Anyway, in case you haven't seen it, I have collected a bunch of video from the protests on Wall Street (Sept. 25) and posted them below. Have a look at what the news media DIDN'T show you! Warning: some of the protest videos contain profanity. By the way our counterparts over in Great Britain held protests of their own on Oct. 10 to protest their big bailout: Click Here to See Protests In London

But while their message might be a tad muddled, all are united by their anger over what they say is a broken system, a system that serves the wealthy and powerful at the expense of the rest.

Protester Brendan Burke insists he and the others are fighting for more than 99 percent of the American population.

"Everyone has this problem," he said, "White, black. Rich or poor. Where you live. Everyone has a financial inequity oppressing them."Sympathetic protests are popping up in other cities, including Los Angeles; Boston; Washington; Providence, R.I.; Albuquerque, N.M.; and Spokane, Wash., with many demonstrations taking place Saturday.

While they may have a ways to go before attaining tea party-like influence, Occupy Wall Street backers say they hope their message will continue to gain momentum -- and will ultimately be heard in the 2012 elections.

In fact, some tea party members have been down to Liberty Square to lend their support. Both groups are fed up with the status quo. 

NOTES & COMMENTS:

These protestors represent a broad spectrum of the American people... those who care about corporate lying, cheating, stealing, and RIPPING US OFF every chance they get. NO! 'Trickle-down' is not working! This country has been sold right out from under us! You call that democracy? We give these big corporate banks literally 1 TRILLION DOLLARS to bail them out because they have RIPPED OFF their customers so many times, for so many years... steadily increasing their fees, literally manipulating their customers into missing payments (becuase we have all been living on the edge of what we can afford) or over-spending (so they gan profit off of the penalties!)... we can nmot afford to pay our bills, because our money has been stolen from us! And, with Republican support, these corporations and SO MANY other big corporations have done the same thing (cheat people out of their hard earn money)... to the point where ordinary people have no more money left for them to steal! So, what does our government do? We bail out the crooks! We stand by while these same companies take the bailout money and continue to RIP US OFF, lay off workers... foreclose our homes... raise our rates... they take the all money we 'loaned' them and they grab up small companies, buy up patents, build new facilities over-seas... outsource... and give their executives and share holders huge 'profits'--those aren't 'profits' those are bail-out funds that ordinary American citizens and our children will be paying for decades to come!! GIVE ME A BREAK!!

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Amanda Knox .

PERUGIA, Italy - Italian appeals court throws out Amanda Knox’s murder conviction, orders her free.

Guilty or not Amanda knows something .As the New Media grab she could profit from the whole affair .

 (A) From seductive "she-devil" to naive girl-next-door, the mystery over American Amanda Knox's true character is key to a sensational appeal trial in Italy that now faces a verdict on Monday.  ***With her fresh-faced good looks, the blue-eyed Knox seemed an unlikely suspect for the brutal murder of her housemate Meredith Kercher in 2007, but accusers say the 24-year-old's demure nature hides a "demonic" soul.

Prosecutors have depicted her as lascivious and slovenly -- a drug-using party goer who regularly brought strange men back to her room for sex and exasperated housemates by leaving vibrators and erotic underwear on display.

They say Kercher was murdered after refusing to take part in a drug-fuelled sex game with Knox, her then boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito and immigrant Rudy Guede. Kercher was found naked in a pool of blood with her throat slit. She was 21.

Knox's family have presented a completely different picture of a loving, sporty girl who spoke proudly to her mother of her friendship with Kercher.

A New York Times editorial in 2009 called her: "An Innocent Abroad".

During her appeal, Knox herself pleaded: "How is it possible that I could be capable of such violence? How could I commit evil against a friend of mine?"

Overnight, the case become a media sensation, a whodunnit starring "Foxy Knoxy" -- the nickname Knox herself used on the Internet-based social network MySpace, though she maintains it referred to her childhood football skills.

Her "Angel Face" -- the title of a book about the case -- hit front pages across the world and prompted an upswell of support in the United States.

The glaring media spotlight, combined with leaks to scoop-hungry tabloids during the investigation and stories about her racy past from former friends, prompted fears that the Seattle native may not have been given a fair trial.

The British Daily Mail newspaper quoted a guest at Knox's going away party saying that it was a scene of debauchery, "with drinks, drugs and bodies everywhere... Everyone just wanted to get drunk, get high and get laid."

Friends of Amanda Knox groups sprang up in her hometown and on the Internet, with messages of support deploring the "warped image" created in the press.

Speaking in her own defence during the trial, Knox said she was innocent and had lied to police at the start because she had been subjected to "a steady crescendo" of abuse during long periods of questioning without a lawyer.

Though she was convicted in 2009 and sentenced to 26 years in prison, Knox protested her innocence and her supporters slammed the Italian justice system and called vociferously for her release as the appeal got underway.

Behind bars, the University of Washington student has wiled away four years reading Dostoyevsky and Hemingway and praying, according to a member of the Italian parliament who has published a book based on numerous talks with Knox.

In the collection of interviews, Knox dreams of freedom and talks about her hopes of being an interpreter or a writer, her love for nature, her longing for motherhood as well as her interest in Buddhism and Christianity.

MP Rocco Girlanda said Knox was "serene" during his visits, but every so often "a melancholic shadow passes through those beautiful blue eyes."

As the appeal trial winds up, Knox has looked increasingly pale and strained. She was shaking the last time she appeared in court.

Her defence has fiercely ridiculed the portrayal of Knox as a dominatrix "Venus in Furs" or a femme fatale who preys on weaker men, like the fictional "Jessica Rabbit" in the cartoon film "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?"

But for Carlo Pacelli -- a lawyer representing Patrick Lumumba, the bar owner that Knox misleadingly identified as the killer in her first statement to police -- the question remains: "Who is Amanda Knox?"

"She has a two-faced soul. One side is angelic, good, compassionate, in some ways saintly, the other is like a she-devil, it is demonic, satanic, diabolical and wants to live out borderline extreme behaviour.

 

NOTES & COMMENTS:

***I never considered Amanda as 'innocent' there was DNA evidence that 'linked' her to the murder , though the 'evidence' seemed circumstantial that Amanda's DNA was found near or on the murder victim . Amanda and the victim had some sort of relationship that may have involved DNA exchange (sexual) other wise Amanda's  boyfriend was never thoroughly investigated by the Italian  authorities .Was she really very friendly with Meredith, as she says, or rather, as others would have it, was there ill-feeling between the considerate, well-mannered Home Counties girl and the loud, self-absorbed Knox, with her bunny-shaped sex toy and lax personal hygiene?

There are many more unexplained mysteries — prominent among them the weird short story she penned shortly before the murder about two students who drug and rape a girl for kicks. Piece them together and one begins to understand why she was placed in the frame.

That said, she was at the time patently immature for all her pretence to sophistication, and none of these puzzles makes her a murderer.This whole case has been a travesty of justice. Meredith's parents in their grief should be seekers of the TRUTH. ..... Shame on Meredith's parents, they lost their daughter, and now they are blindly willing to ruin some other young girls life because they are too angry and ignorant to look at the facts. Shame on them, this makes me furious, and it has to do with justice not being American. - loren, USA, Good grief. How spectacularly offensive. There does seem to be a general air of disbelief in the US than an American could be guilty of such a crime but most of your compatriots seem to be trying to be objective. You might consider joining them.

(A)

During the four years she has languished in an Italian prison, Amanda Knox has written her memoirs, describing how she came to be convicted — unjustly, she of course insists — of brutally murdering her British flatmate, Meredith Kercher.

If she is absolved of one of the most grippingly macabre crimes of recent times — an outcome many observers predict when her appeal case reaches its denouement on Monday — her story is expected to be turned into a multi-million-pound Hollywood movie.

(B)

Meanwhile, a group of British film-makers led by award-winning director Michael Winterbottom are considering a rival film with Colin Firth, who owns a villa not far from the murder scene in Perugia, portraying a crusading reporter who proves Knox’s innocence.

Three American TV networks are already said to have offered a million dollars for the first interview with Knox should she walk free. Her Seattle-based PR agent says he has piles of interview requests on his desk from around the world. The Italian press has even reported that one US TV network has hired a private jet to whisk Amanda and her relatives back to the States if she’s cleared.

 

The Alernative : Mitt Romney

Romney is closer to Reagan , yet the GOP won't embrace the man . If Obama has not a chance to win , the worse of the two is to vote for Romney .

Mitt Romney has been on my mind over the past few days . After looking at the other GOP hopefuls , there it dawned on me that Romney is being treated as an 'outsider' among his GOP tea party supported candidates . How is this ? Romney has been tarnished by the right over his Health care overhaul in Massachusetts . Either case Romney is as close to Ronald Reagan as anyone could be . The rest of the GOP candidates are a 'freak-show' of would be's who are warmed by the extreme end of the Right .  Recent comments made by Rick Perry put a strange twist in the race , "Did Perry's performance in the most recent debate affect the horse race? Maybe yes, but maybe no," says CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. "Perry's support is down just two points, and Romney is up only one to three points - and since all those numbers are well within the sampling error, it doesn't look like much has changed, possibly because average voters aren't as plugged into the debates as political junkies are. If the debates have had an effect, it may be mostly in favor of Gingrich, whose support went from 5 percent in mid-September to 10 percent now."Obama's ace-in-the-hole remains the fact that he is personally more popular than his policies. According to the poll, his favorable rating, which measures reactions to him personally, is eight points higher than his job approval rating. Fifty-two percent of all Americans disagree with him on issues, but 58 percent believe he has the personality and leadership qualities a president should have. And by a 49 to 43 percent margin, Americans say that personal qualities are more important than issues to their vote for president.
Only Romney matches up well with Obama on both of those measures. Six in ten Americans say Romney has the personal qualities a president should have, compared to only 45 percent who feel that way about Perry.